A one-day international seminar organised by the School of Law and Government inDublin City University, theInstitute for International Conflict Resolution and Reconstruction at DCU, and VOX-Pol Network of Excellence (NoE) at DCU,with the support of the Irish Research Council

The war in Syria, Iraq and the dreadful humanitarian situation due to the influx of refugees from the broader Middle East are the challenges that Turkey is facing today. The EU and other international powers promote political stability in the country because of their fear of a spillover of the crisis. This is done despite the recent growing authoritarian tendency of the Turkish government and the repression against civil society. While stability is needed for a country and a society to flourish, what is the price that the international community and Turkish society are willing to pay for it?

This one-day international seminar brings together experts and academics to reflect upon the most recent developments in Turkey’s domestic politics, examining issues from the increasing authoritarian tendency of the government to Kurdish nationalism, and in international and regional politics, ranging from the role of the EU and the EU-Turkey deal on migration to the geopolitics of the current crisis in the broader Middle East. Speakers and participants will reflect on the ethical and political challenge that “bringing stability and peace to the Middle East” generate, exploring the contested meaning of these two key-terms when considered from opposing perspectives.